Ted’s main research focus is African economic development, including work on the economic causes and consequences of violence; the impact of ethnic divisions on local collective action; interactions between health, education, environment, and productivity for the poor; and methods for transparent social science research. He has conducted field work in Kenya, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, and India. Many of the datasets used in his research are posted online, either on the relevant article page (on this website) or on Dataverse.
Featured Research
Twenty Year Economic Impacts of Deworming
Hamory, Joan, Edward Miguel, Michael Walker, Michael Kremer, and Sarah Baird
2021
Published Paper
Education and Human CapitalHealth
This study exploits a randomized school health intervention that provided deworming treatment to Kenyan children and utilizes longitudinal data to estimate impacts on economic outcomes up to 20 years
Falling Living Standards during the COVID-19 Crisis: Quantitative Evidence from Nine Developing Countries
Dennis Egger, Edward Miguel, Shana S. Warren, Ashish Shenoy, Elliott Collins, Dean Karlan, Doug Parkerson, A. Mushfiq Mobarak, Günther Fink, Christopher Udry, Michael Walker, Johannes Haushofer, Magd
2021
Published Paper
African DevelopmentHealth
Despite numerous journalistic accounts, systematic quantitative evidence on economic conditions during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic remains scarce for most low- and middle-income countries, partly du
Evidence on Research Transparency in Economics
Edward Miguel
2021
Published Paper
Research Methodology
A decade ago, the term “research transparency” was not on economists’ radar screen, but in a few short years a scholarly movement has emerged to bring new open science practices, tools and norms
Elections and Selfishness
Kjetil Bjorvatn, Simon Galle, Lars Ivar Oppedal Berge, Edward Miguel, Daniel Posner, Bertil Tungodden, Kelly Zhang
2020
African DevelopmentPolitical Economy and Conflict
Elections affect the division of resources in society and are occasions for political elites to make appeals rooted in voters’ self-interest. Hence, elections may erode altruistic norms and cause pe
A Framework for Open Policy Analysis
Fernando Hoces de la Guardia, Sean Grant, and Edward Miguel
2020
Published Paper
Research Methodology
The evidence-based policy movement promotes the use of empirical evidence to inform policy decision-making. While several social science disciplines are undergoing a “credibility revolution&rd
Twenty Year Economic Impacts of Deworming
Hamory, Joan, Edward Miguel, Michael Walker, Michael Kremer, and Sarah Baird
2021
Published Paper
Education and Human CapitalHealth
This study exploits a randomized school health intervention that provided deworming treatment to Kenyan children and utilizes longitudinal data to estimate impacts on economic outcomes up to 20 years
Transparency and Reproducibility: Conceptualizing the Problem (Chapter 6) and Potential Solutions (Chapter 7)
Christensen, Garret, and Edward Miguel
2020
Book Chapter
Research Methodology
A broad overview of research transparency and open science issues in the social sciences, across two chapters (Chapters 6 and 7).
Using survey questions to measure preferences: Lessons from an experimental validation in Kenya
Michal Bauer, Julie Chytilova, and Edward Miguel
2020
Published Paper
African DevelopmentResearch Methodology
Can a short survey instrument reliably measure a range of fundamental economic preferences across diverse settings? We focus on survey questions that systematically predict behavior in incentivized
Deepening or Diminishing Ethnic Divides? The Impact of Urban Migration in Kenya
Kramon, Eric, Sarah Baird, Joan Hamory Hicks, and Edward Miguel.
2020
Published Paper
African DevelopmentPolitical Economy and Conflict
The impact of urban migration on ethnic politics is the subject of longstanding debate. “First generation” modernization theories predict that urban migration should reduce ethnic identi
Pre-results Review at the Journal of Development Economics: Lessons Learned
Bogdanoski, Aleksander, Andrew Foster, Dean Karlan, and Edward Miguel
2019
Working Paper
Research Methodology
A discussion of the 2018-19 JDE Pre-results Review Pilot.
Research Transparency is on the Rise in Economics
Swanson, Nicholas, Garret Christensen, Rebecca Littman, David Birke, Edward Miguel, Elizabeth Levy Paluck, Zenan Wang
2020
Published Paper
Research Methodology
This study provides a first assessment of awareness of, attitudes toward, perceived norms regarding, and adoption of open science practices within a broadly representative sample of active economics
Non-economic factors in violence: Evidence from organized crime, suicides and climate in Mexico
Baysan, Ceren, Marshall Burke, Felipe Gonzalez, Solomon Hsiang, and Edward Miguel
2019
Published Paper
Environment and ClimatePolitical Economy and Conflict
Organized intergroup violence is almost universally modeled as a calculated act motivated by economic factors. In contrast, it is generally assumed that non-economic factors, such as an individual&r
Does Electrification Supercharge Economic Development?
Lee, Kenneth, Edward Miguel, and Catherine Wolfram
2020
Published Paper
African DevelopmentEnvironment and Climate
In this paper, we discuss what we can learn from the past decade of microeconomic research on the impacts of household electrification, with the goal of highlighting how future initiatives can be be